This Christmas
by Slytherinchica08
Summary: Last Christmas Lily got her heart broken now this Christmas she ends up going on a date with James Potter. Will there date turn out to be everything they hoped or will their first date end up being their last?


"David, just go away!" I yelled back to him as I walked towards the Gryffindor Common room trying to escape from him.

"Come on, Lily, that was last year," he said exasperatedly, "give me another chance."

"I'm sorry, but you ran out of chances when you put your tongue down another girl's throat while dating me." I quipped turning to face him, my face red from anger.

- Last Christmas-

David and I had just started dating only a week ago, so I wasn't sure if we were going to exchange Christmas gifts but I figured it wouldn't hurt anything to get him one so I snuck out to Hogsmeade to pick up his gift. It was just a book, nothing really special, but I had overheard him saying that he would love to get it so I knew this is what I would give him.

On Christmas Eve, I took my time wrapping the gift, wanting to make sure that it looked absolutely perfect. The paper was flat against the book and the tape was perfectly straight, I might have went a little overboard with wrapping but since it did take me fifteen minutes to wrap it, it should be nothing but perfect. Now all that was left was to place the bow on it, though it took a few minutes to decide where exactly I should place the bow since I lost track of which side was the top of the book and which was the bottom.

I didn't usually stay at Hogwarts over Christmas Break but Petunia was having her fiancé and his family over for Christmas and we all thought it might be best for me to stay here so as to not cause any trouble for this union. It hurt a bit, knowing that Petunia didn't want me home to meet her fiancé and his family, but I didn't want to get in the way of things so I sucked it up and unpacked my trunk while everyone was busy packing theirs. The only good news out of it all was that David's name was also on the staying list, so I would be able to surprise him on Christmas day and have a celebration of our own.

The next morning I woke up, excited to give David his gift and see the look on his face when he realizes that I got him the book that he wanted. I could see it in my head now, he would look at me with this big grin and ask me how I knew this was what he wanted and I would just grin back and say lucky guess. Then the rest of the day we would spend together cuddled up in front of the fireplace in the Ravenclaw Tower, with hot chocolate and enjoying each others company.

I whipped through my normal morning routine, not wanting to waste a single minute of my Christmas Day with David. Quickly grabbing his gift off of my trunk, I ran out the door and only slowed when I got close to the tower, not wanting him to know that I had ran the whole way there. The one good thing about being a prefect is that we know what each common room entrance looks like and what you have to do to get inside. I waited in front of the Ravenclaw door for the eagle knocker to ask me a question, which it seemed to take it's sweet time doing though in reality it was only a few seconds.

"Where do vanished objects go?" The eagle knocker asked me. *

I thought about it for a moment, wanting to take my time and get the right answer so I wouldn't have to wait around for someone else to come along especially since almost everybody is gone for the holidays. 'Where do vanished objects go', 'where do vanished objects go', I repeated over and over in my head as I thought about the answer. 'Well, vanished objects go nowhere really but at the same time everywhere.' That's when the answer clicked in my mind.

"They go into nonbeing, which is to say everything."*

The door swung open to reveal the Ravenclaw common room which was decked out with it's own Christmas tree with presents underneath. I made my way into the room and peered around, unsure of where I should go from here. There were only two other people in the common room, but they were both a little too preoccupied with each other to pay me any attention. I should have thought this plan through a little better since the staircases change into slides if a person of the opposite sex tries to go up them. Sighing, I plopped myself into a chair and tried to figure out what to do. Anxiously, I looked around, hoping that David would appear at the bottom of the staircase but no such luck. My eyes caught sight of the couple once more and my eyes grew wide in recognition. It was David!

I stomped my way over to them and tapped the girl on her shoulder since she was currently seated on his lap. She turned to face me with a snide comment on her lips until she realized that I was the one standing there and she quickly scurried away. David's face was one of pure shock, his mouth opening and closing trying to say something.

"Save it, David, I don't want to hear the lies that you're about to spew," I said trying to keep my anger in check as I threw his gift at him and ran out the door.

For once, I was thankful for the empty Gryffindor common room as I flung myself down on the couch and soaked up the warmth from the fireplace. When I finally got around to peeling myself off of the couch, three hours had passed by, most of which was spent in a blissful nap. Groggily, I made my way over to the tree and dug around for my gifts. Most of them were from my parents but I had a few from my friends as well. After opening many different books, quills, inks, and assorted candies, I only had one gift left to open but there was no name for who had sent it. Curiously, I opened the gift which was revealed to be a black velvet box. A gasp caught in my throat when I caught sight of the beautiful necklace inside. As I held the box up to eye level, a note slipped out and fell to the ground though, I took no notice of it as I stared at the necklace. I took it out of the box and placed it around my neck, and looked down to admire it.

-Present Day Christmas-

As I stood there facing David, my hand reached up and latched onto the necklace I had gotten last year for Christmas. Every day, I wondered who had given me the beautiful necklace, and at first had thought it was from my parents but when I brought it up to them they had never seen the necklace before. Once I found out it wasn't them, I began to wonder if it was from David, but by that point I really didn't care who had given it to me, I was still going to wear it.

"Come on Lily, let me prove to you that I've changed," he pleaded.

"Honestly David, I'm not interested. I've moved onto someone else," I told him.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Well… it's… James Potter of course," I said telling him the name of the first person I saw.

"Huh?" James called out, coming our way. " I heard my name."

'Oh great,' I thought to myself, 'it's all over now.'

"I was just telling David here, that we are dating. Isn't that right James?" I said giving James a pointed look.

"Oh, yes, that's right dear," he said pulling me to him, stressing the word dear. "I was actually just looking for you; I figured we should go to dinner together."

"I would love to James, I just have to go to the common room first," I told him glad that he went along with it. "Well, have a good day David." I said and walked away with James arm slung around my shoulder.

We got quite a few looks sent our way as we walked passed everyone. I made sure to shrug his arm off of my shoulder though, as soon as we were far enough away that David would not see.

"Are you going to explain what's going on?" James asked.

"I will, when there aren't so many ears to overhear." I whispered to him.

He followed me to the common room which was basically empty when we got there since most people were either home for the holiday's or already down for dinner. James grabbed a hold of my arm before I could make my way up the girl's dormitory staircase, and pulled me over towards the window away from the few remaining people.

"Explain," James demanded.

"Alright," I said ripping my arm from his grasp, "I dated David last year for about a week, until Christmas Day when I found him making out with another girl and now he wants me back. So, I told him that I was dating someone."

"And it just so happened that you told him my name?" James asked doubtful.

"You were the first person I saw that was our age. Listen, I'm sorry that I dragged you into this, we can stage some big fight in a couple of days or something but until then can you pretend to be my boyfriend?" I begged with him.

"On one condition Lily, I don't want to pretend to be your boyfriend," I tried to interrupt him but he continued on. "Just give me one real date and if at the end of the night you decide that you still don't like me then I will go along with this plan of yours and pretend to date you and then have some big fight in front of everybody. Just give me one shot." He compromised.

"Alright," I sighed, "one chance James and one chance only, and if I tell you I'm not interested after that then you'll leave me alone. Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, we do. How does tomorrow night sound? We'll go out to Hogsmeade for a Christmas dinner," he asked.

"Sounds good," I told him and turned towards the stairs. When I reached them, I turned back to James, "and James, don't blow it."

"I won't. I'll wait for you to come back down and we can head to dinner together," he shouted out across the room.

I just smiled and made my way upstairs to grab the little bit of homework that I wanted to work on after dinner. I know that I still have all of break to work on it but I wanted to get it done right away so I wouldn't have to waste away the last few days of freedom being piled under loads of homework. Quickly, I made my way over to my bed and grabbed my book bag and hurried down the stairs to get to dinner. Being that it was our seventh and last year at Hogwarts my friends and I had decided to stay over break to spend some more time together, besides, it's not like I was really wanted at home with Petunia and her brand new husbands family.

James and I got quite a few looks as we walked into dinner together, I especially got some looks from my best friends, the blonde Jamie and the brunette Sasha. The three of us have been inseparable since our first year here and over the years have only suffered through a few spats though the three of us always came out on top of them. I plopped myself down next to Sasha only to have James follow suit and plop down next to me. I thought for sure that he was going to sit next to his friends who were all sitting a little farther down the table where the infamous Sirius Black was busy flirting with any girl who bothered to listen but he didn't move from his spot instead piling food upon his plate.

Jamie raised her eyebrow at me from across the table but I ignored her and started piling food on my plate as well. Conversation was sparse for what the three of us were used to but I welcomed the silence knowing that later tonight when I got back up to the girl's dormitory I was going to be in for an inquisition from both of them. Quietly, I excused myself from the table and headed towards the library to do a bit of studying. Though, I didn't get very far as my mind was not allowing me to concentrate on the Transfiguration homework in front of me, instead, I was busy daydreaming about what my date with James tomorrow would be like, not that I was looking forward to it… much.

As I had predicted the inquisition had stayed up waiting for me to return from the library. I held up my hand in front of their faces as soon as they both opened their mouths to begin asking me questions.

"You have five questions and five questions only so you better make them good ones," I told them before lowering my hand.

They exchanged a quick look before Sasha started in, "what was up with you and James this evening? You don't usually let him get that close to you."

I sighed; I should have guessed they would just get right down to it though I had hoped they would save this question for later so I could come up with a proper response.

"Listen, David approached me in the corridors, so in order to lose him, I may have sort of told him that I was dating someone. When he wanted a name I told him the first person that walked by, James Potter. Well, things kind of exploded in my face after that when James went along with it and so he was just helping me by pretending that we are dating." I took in a deep breath after my somewhat long explanation waiting for the next question.

"Then why was it that we overheard James tell his buddies that he has a date with you tomorrow evening?" Jamie interjected.

"Because, I sort of agreed to a date with him tomorrow evening, it seemed like a good idea at the time and he swore that if the date was absolutely horrible he wouldn't bother me."

"We just have one more question," both Sasha and Jamie said at the same time, "what are you going to wear for your date tomorrow?"

"I don't know," I sighed, plopping myself down onto my bed. This had been a horrible idea, maybe there was still time to cancel, I thought hopefully.

Sasha and Jamie both squealed before running to my closet throwing out clothes as they went through each item. I could hear them both mutter "no, this won't work" and, "how about this, no not that either." It was hopeless; I really didn't have any great date night outfits. At least I didn't think I had any until Jamie pulled out the perfect outfit. James wasn't going to know what had hit him tomorrow.

The next day was a bit of a blur, ripping through the presents under the tree and eating so much that I had a food baby. The only disadvantage of this was that it only made me want to take a nap but my friends had the bright idea to go outside and hangout before I had to get ready for my date with James this evening. I was only slightly looking forward to the date, not because of who it would be with but it had been a while since I had been asked out (even by James), so it would be nice to spend some time out and about.

We spent our time outside throwing snowballs and chasing each other around and by the time we had gone inside the snowball fight had expanded to most of the students that had stayed over the holidays. Out of breath, the three of us slowly made our way up to Gryffindor Tower to help me get ready for my date. After a quick jump in the shower, I was attacked by Sasha and Jamie with my hairbrush and makeup as they pushed me onto my bed.

"You know guys, I can do this for myself," I told them through pursed lips as Jamie applied my lipstick.

They ignored me and continued on with their ministrations and after a horrible snarl, I turned around and glared at Sasha's forcefulness which caused Jamie to smear green eye shadow across my face. Learning from my mistake, I made sure to sit very still so as to not cause another disaster. The finishing product was well worth it though and was only enhanced once I put on the outfit Sasha and Jamie had picked out for me the previous evening.

My eyes were done in a light green color making my eyes pop and look even bigger than they already were. Sasha had somehow managed to tame the wild beast a top my head having half my hair up and the bottom half down. I felt no less then elegant in that moment even though I was only wearing a pair of jeans and a green off the shoulder top. It was sexy without being too sexy and with it being James Potter; I definitely didn't want it to be too sexy. I turned around to face my friends and get their opinion on their handy work and received two thumbs up from both of them before they pushed me out the door to meet James.

My nerves were going a mile a minute as I walked down the stairs to meet James. I'm not really sure why they were going so fast, I mean it's just Potter after all, it's not like I really wanted to go on this date anyways. Even though I tried to talk myself out of my nerves and that I really didn't want to be there, my heart still jumped in my chest at the sight of James waiting for me at the bottom of the staircase. It was rather cute, as he stood there hand messing up his hair and rocking back and forth on his heels. I never thought that James Potter would ever be this nervous about something. I cleared my throat to catch his attention and his head quickly snapped around to face me.

"Wow, you look beautiful Lily," James said, holding out his hand for me to take.

"Thank you James, you're not looking so bad yourself," I told him as I walked down the remaining stairs deliberately ignoring his outstretched hand.

He quickly dropped his hand down to his side as we began to stroll out of the almost empty common room. We still received a few odd looks from people who still couldn't believe that I could actually be civil to James let alone dating him but we just ignored them and continued on our way. The silence that stretched between us was awkward at first but then comforting as we walked. It was nice to know that he wasn't trying so hard to be with me that he would make up anything to talk about.

"I hope you're alright with The Three Broomsticks, it's the only place open to eat on Christmas Day in Hogsmeade," he whispered through the silent night that was around us.

"The Three Broomsticks will be fine, "I responded with a sigh.

This is definitely not how I had pictured a date with James Potter to be like. I had imagined non-stop talking, him trying to crack jokes or playing pranks, and me being very uncomfortable and unable to handle being anywhere near him. This though, was different, I could actually handle this. It was weird though, since I've always been used to his loud voice floating across the room. I decided to give him a bit of a break and actually indulge on this so call date of ours.

"So, James, what are your plans once we're out of here?" I asked looking over to him as we walked. I could see the lights of the town up ahead of us and knew it wouldn't be long before we reached our destination.

"I'm planning on going through Auror training this summer," he told me, reaching his hand up to brush against his already wild hair.

"Wow," I gasped, surprised at his answer. I had never pictured him in such a serious job before.

"Voldemort has to be stopped and I will lay my life down before joining his crew or allowing them to live." James announced as he stopped in his place, looking at me.

"I agree James, I just never pictured you with such a serious job," I voiced.

"Just because I like to joke around with my friends, doesn't mean I'm not serious about somethings in my life." He stated before stalking off towards The Three Broomsticks.

"James, listen, I'm sorry. Why don't we take this date to actually get to know one another? That way at the end of the night we can both make a decision about the other and decide where to go from there." I pleaded with him. I had never felt so horrible about judging someone before and really hoped we could take this chance to get to know each other.

"Alright Lily, but from here on out no more judgements, at least not until we make our decisions at the end of the night," he bargained with me.

"That's fine James," I agreed as I caught up to him.

We walked in silence the rest of the way to The Three Broomsticks ans were blasted with teh noise of chatter as we opened the door. Everyone who lived in Hogsmeade but have had the same idea as James, to go out for their Christmas dinner, since the Pub was already almost full. James grabbed ahold of my hand as he dragged me through the crowd, searching for a place to sit. When he grabbed my hand,I had felt a slight jolt go through me and couldn't help but smile. Finally, we found a small table towards the back corner where James promptly pulled a chair out for me.

"Thank you James," I said as he pushed my chair in before he pushed it in too far and I let out a loud "ooph."

"I'm so sorry," James said profusely as he pulled the chair back slightly. "It was stuck on a crack and wouldn't budge."

"It's alright James, just sit down," I told him as I placed a hand on my chest, trying to catch my breath.

Looking across the table, I noticed that James cheeks were tinged a light pink color from embarrassment. I stifled back a laugh, knowing that he wouldn't appreciate it sicne he was trying so hard to make this a good date. Our waiter came over to us and placed their Christmas Special menu on the table before asking us what we would like to drink.

"I'll just have a butterbeer to start with,"I told him.

"Make that two," James interjected.

"So," I began as our waiter left, "Tell me about yourself James. Do you have any siblings?"

"Nope, I'm an only child. My parent's figured why try for a second one when they got it right the first time," James joked. "I'm just kidding. My parents are both Aurors and never had time to raise a second kid let alone the one they already had. Don't get me wrong my parent's are great, I just wish I had been able to spend more time with them." He supplied.

"Well if you want a sibling, I'll give you mine," I told him, only half joking.

"The way you say that makes me think that I'm better off without one," I said, leaning over the table towards her.

"No, it's just that-," I started before I was interrupted by our waiter coming back with our drinks.

"Are you both ready to order," he asked us, as he placed our drinks down.

"Not quite,"James told him, before he walked away leaving us alone once again. "So what were you saying," James asked, taking a sip of his butterbeer.

"I was saying, it's just that she doesn't like that I can do something that she can't. We used to be so close, that was until I started showing magical abilities and then I was nothing more then a freak to her. It hasn't changed since then. She still thinks I'm this complete freak because I can do magic and every attempt I have made to bring back the relationship we once had has been denied." I told him wistfully as I thought about the relationship that I once had and how I wished for it back.

"That's too bad Lily, she's really missing out by denying you. Maybe if she got over the fact that you can do magic things would be the same between you two." James said hopefully.

"No James, I don't think that's going to happen but thank you." I softly whispered across the table not wanting to look up at him, knowing that if I did he would see the hurt in my eyes.

I was just going to reach for my glass for a sip of butterbeer when James hand grabbed a hold of my own and squeezed it lightly. Looking up at him, I noticed that his own eyes held sorrow, sorrow for a broken relationship that I once held so dear. Not wanting this moment to effect the date, I shot a quick smile in his direction before letting go of his soft hand and taking a small drink. Quickly, I wracked my brain for any other topic for us to take about, one that would not bring such sadness to the table hopefully.

"So-"we both started before "gestured for me to continue.

"No, why don't you go. I asked the last one." I told him.

"Uh, ok." he began then took a minutes pause before continuing. "What made you decide to give me a chance?"

"Honestly, at first it was the promise that if this turned out disastrous you would finally leave me alone, but now that I'm here I'm really glad I gave you this chance." I told him.

Our waiter appeared again and this time we placed our orders, mine was a simple Pot Roast where as James went all out for the medium-well steak. When the waiter once again disappeared, an awkward silence filled the space between us. I looked around the pub at all the different faces as I tried to search for a topic, anything really. The words that came out of my mouth though, made me draw a hand to my mouth in complete shock. The look on James face also registered complete shock as my words sunk in.

"Did you just say that you like me?" James questioned.

"Um," I started, grabbing a hold of the necklace I got last Christmas. Before I could continue to cover myself, James face registered an even deeper shock. Confused, I turned around, trying to figure out what he's looking at.

"The necklace," he whispered.

"It's a gift I got last Christmas. I'm not sure who it's from though, there was no name on the package," I told him.

"Lily, if I tell you something, do you promise to not get upset," James asked.

"I promise James," I replied before extending my hand across the table for him to grab.

"It's me," he began, then continues after I give him a puzzled look. "I gave you that necklace. There was a note in it that explained everything but you must have missed it."

"What did the note say," I asked. When it was met with complete silence, I asked again. "What did the note say James?"

"For the girl as beautiful as the flower she was named after, with eyes that are as beautiful and as bright as the emerald. I saw this and couldn't help but think that it belongs around your neck and no others. James." He spoke barely above a whisper clearly embarrassed by the note.

In that moment, our food arrives and any response that I was trying to come up with had been put on hold. We ate in complete silence, though it wasn't awkward, at least not for me, since I was busy trying to figure out how to react. It was sweet, though I doubt the note would have done anything for me before this date. I probably would have tossed the note and the necklace into the garbage or the fire had I known that James was the one who gave it to me. Grabbing a hold of the necklace again, I looked across the table at a solemn James.

"Thank you James," I said as I got up form my spot at the table. I could see a slight look of hurt cross his face as he watched me, until it turns to a look of confusion as I walk towards him. "It's wonderful." Then I dip down next to him and place a light kiss to his cheek before returning to my seat and continuing my meal.

A smile graces my lips as I watch him place a hand to his cheek as a big grin takes over his face. In that moment, I couldn't help but think about how handsome he is. I began to realize that in this one date he has managed to do something that I never thought he would be able to do, capture my heart. Strangely, I'm glad that he was able to do it. I'm glad that after tonight, I don't have to say good bye to him, instead, I can keep him to myself. Well, besides his three friends.

The feeling of the night begins to change around the two of us after I come to this realization that I like James. I'm actually excited to be here and honestly interested in what's going on. The date ends in a positive note as we exit The Three Broomsticks into the light snow that's coming down outside. We walk back to Hogwarts hand in hand with some small chatter being exchanged between the two of us. James stopped suddenly and turned around to face me.

"Care to dance," he asked hold out his other hand for me to take.

"But there's no music," I told him.

"We don't need any music, we'll just go by the beating of our hearts," he said.

Without answering him verbally, I place my hand in his and he began to lead me around in a circle as we dance to the beat of our hearts. I had to admit, it was rather romantic of him and had never imagined this when I pictured our date for this evening. If he hadn't already captured my heart before this, I would have been a goner. I allowed myself to get completely lost in our movements, letting my hair down so to speak and really enjoying my first date with James Potter because I could guarantee that this would not be the last and I didn't want to forget a single moment.

"So have you made up your mind Lily," James asked looking down at me as we continued to spin around in the snow.

"I have," I started, "I think that... next time I should push in my own chair."

"That wasn't my fault, I told you it got stuck on a crack in the floor." James said flustered.

I tried hard to keep back a laugh at how funny James looked all flustered but I couldn't do it. As the laugh escaped me, James stopped twirling me around and I quickly took off towards Hogwarts, knowing that if he caught me, I would be in trouble and probably in the snow as well. I could hear him following behind me and he only just caught me as I reached the bottom stair to get into Hogwarts. He picked me up and spun me around before placing me back on the stair. I turned around and faced him and knew that in that moment I was going to kiss him.

As I leaned towards him, I could see him watching my face for any sign of hesitation, which he would never find as I had never been more sure of anything then I was in this moment. I brought my arms up around his shoulders bringing him slightly closer to myself before I finally pressed my lips against his. It wasn't a long kiss but standing outside of Hogwarts as the snow came down around us making the wonderful place that much more beautiful was as good of a first kiss as any girl could ever hope for.

We walked up to the Gryffindor common room in complete silence, still holding hands and only let go once we reached the portrait. I was dreading going up to the girls dormitory, knowing that when I did, the Spanish Inquisition awaited me. Instead of going right up to our rooms, we decided to sit together on the couch in front of the fireplace; our friends could wait a bit longer to find out what happened this evening. The next thing either James or I knew though, we were being woken up by giggling. Taking a peak with one eye, I noticed my two friends and James three standing right in front of us.

'I guess it's now or never,' I thought before leaning over to James and placed another kiss on his lips, though this one was much longer to satisfy the audience that we had.

*taken from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows page 591.

AN: This was written as a Christmas present for LunarLuna! I hope you all enjoyed my one shot about Lily and James first date! Leave me a review to let me know what you think of it!


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